I have a late 2009 27" 3.06GHz C2D - with a 1TB HDD. The Superdrive is very unreliable so I am planning to use an external one when I need it. This got me thinking, I would like to put an SSD in place of the Superdrive - I have seen various people talking about it.

Amazon sell a 500GB Samsung 840 Series - would this work, and what parts would be required? Also where in the UK could I get it done, I have read up on DIY and I don't fancy it at all, I would much rather pay someone who knows what they're doing! When I enquired with an Apple authorised repair centre they said that the Late 2009 doesn't have a bracket for a 2nd drive and they didn't seem aware of the possibility of using the ODD space.

I am also interested in the speed - I would like to boot from the SSD and assume it would support 3Gbit/s - is that correct?

As for where it could be done in the UK, I have no clue, but it does not look that complicated, but then again, I opened my 2007 Aluminium iMac thrice already to replace the HDD with a bigger HDD and then with an SSD and then finally remove the ODD, since it was frelling up.

As for the speed, S-ATA 3.0 Gbps (S-ATA II) would be correct and more than sufficient.

So is the Optibay much the same as the OWC Data Doubler and all the others available on Amazon...don't want to wait ages for one if they're all the same. The Optibay ones on ebay just mention Macbooks...

It is still the guide from iFixIt I linked to in the first reply, the same pictures and descriptions.

Ah, sorry about that. You're right. I think some people are intimidated by the 4 cables behind the LCD. Compared to pulling apart a Mini, this is not so bad. ajhard should have no problem finding a shop to help out.

Any comments on which caddy is best, whether any other bits are required and if the SSD looks ok?

Thanks

Just completed the install with the OWC tray (same one in your link) and a Samsung 840 (256)
on an 09 i7. The thing that slows me down is dealing with the tiny LCD cables. The wide ribbon on the right is a little hard to grab and release the side locks. It's so thin and delicate looking, I'm a little scared to really grab it. The small ribbon on the bottom left has a levered latch you have to pull back on it's top and then pull the cable down. It was a little sticky, but I took a break and got it done. The very top left cable you detach first is easy to lift out, but it's paper thin and short, so it doesn't have a positive feel when you put it back. My hands are perhaps large, so it's a matter of getting a feel while you hold the panel open. I worked with the iMac standing up.

I've worked with temp sensors before, so use a tiny object to slowly peel it and it's square cover away. The stick should remain if you go very slow & you can re-apply to the SSD. I didn't bother unplugging the temp cable. Just peeled it away before I removed the Optical.

I use an small hemostat to help with screws, but tweezers are fine.

The 840 works quite well. On the 09 I don't see the need to get anything faster.
I'll enable trim after re-filling some user files I removed for the install.

I don't know anything about Trim - is there an idiots guide I can take a look at so as not to screw it up?

The caddy is nice, but designed for taller SSDs, It means you'll have to flex the cable right at the connection point on the SSD. I could have done a little surgery on the metal (bend it back and out of the way) but it works as is.